


Quarter to Full

by cosmicGeologist



Category: Original Work
Genre: Coming Out, Dancing, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Healthy Relationships, Hurt/Comfort, One Shot, Self-Indulgent, Trans Male Character, Wish Fulfillment, tiny dash of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-12
Updated: 2018-10-12
Packaged: 2019-07-29 18:03:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16269500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosmicGeologist/pseuds/cosmicGeologist
Summary: A father-daughter night out goes in an unexpected direction.





	Quarter to Full

The setting sun cast shadows that danced along with the movements of the small figure that spun circles to the beat of the crooning saxophone. The swirl of her skirt as she moved and the gritty warm pavement against her feet blended with the music and created a blurred, golden, sun-kissed feeling that draped itself lazily over the whole parking lot. The taste of chocolate still coated her mouth the ice cream she’d eaten earlier and the sweet, distinct scent of the nearby flower cart blended with the flavor. 

Suddenly, two rough calloused hands were under her armpits and she was tossed up, spinning in midair until she was face-to-face with her Papa. His face was wrinkled into a craggy crooked smile that seemed to take up his whole face until his whole being seemed to be made of living sunshine.

The girl squealed excitedly and reached towards him in a wordless, although certainly not silent, request for him to bring her closer to him. He indulged her, pulling her close and putting her on his hip. She giggled into his shoulder, the worn brown leather of his jacket pressed against her face, as he started over exaggeratedly rocking back and forth to the beat of the song loudly playing from the speakers on stage.

“Papa! Papa you should dance with me!”

“Isn’t that what I’m doing, Moonbeam?”

“No! You’re doing it wrong! Put me down and I’ll show you!”

“Okie-dokie, then. Down you go.”

He gently set her down, and she was moving as soon as her sparkly pink princess shoes touched the ground. She grabbed his hands in her own tiny ones and swung them around energetically as she danced to the comparatively much more sedate music. He chucked, and picked her up again and set her feet on his own before she had time to protest. 

“There. Now we can dance together.”

“Papa! That’s so smart! Now I can make sure you dance right!”

They continued to dance to music, each step to the beat and slowly moving them in a wide circle, making their way around the open space available, their shadows mingling with those of the crowd around them as they became longer and longer as the sun descended further beyond the horizon. When the sun was no longer visible, the girl was beginning to droop in his arms, a content smile still on her face as her movements became less energetic and excited. 

“Eve, sweetheart, it’s about time to go home. Your Papa’s starting to get sleepy and wants to go to bed.”

“Aww, but Papa-.” Her sentence was interrupted by a wide yawn.

“But Papa, I don’t wanna go home. I wanna stayyyyyy. Please?”

“Sorry Moonbeam, no can do.”

Eve grumbled sleepily, a small fist rubbing at her eye as she pouted up at him, but she gave no other retort and allowed him to lift her up and carry her to the car. As he buckled her into the well worn child seat, he noticed an unusually pensive look on the girl’s face, eyebrows scrunched up and lips pursed almost into another pout.

“Eve? Everything okay?”

She was silent for a moment, before looking up at him with an alarmingly vulnerable look in her eyes.

“Moonbeam?”

“...Papa, is it okay if I’m not a girl? Cuz I don’t wanna be a girl. It doesn’t fit right”

He stopped and blinked at her. In the moment he paused, he saw her- no them, he’d use they and them until he could ask- tense up, shoulders climbing towards their ears the longer he didn’t respond.

“Moonbeam, sweetheart, of course it’s okay,” he rushed to say, placing a hand on their knee. 

They visibly relaxed, shoulders dropping back to closer to their usual placement despite the tension still visible throughout their frame, and they met his eyes with eyes filled with hope. 

“Really? I can be a boy? Really? But I still like pink and princesses and dresses and boys aren’t supposed to like stuff like that and if I do then maybe I can’t be a boy but I want to be a boy and I’m not a girl even though I’m supposed to be and-”

“Heyheyhey, sweetheart, no. Boys can wear and like whatever they want. You aren’t supposed to be anything but you, and you can be whatever you want to be. No matter who you are, you will always be my child and I will always love you. Always and no matter what. From the moon to the sun and back, and that won’t change just because you aren’t a girl. And I’m so happy you could trust me enough to tell me.”

He could see tears in his son’s eyes well up as he spoke, but soldered on in hopes that his words would calm him. Despite his hopes, tears were running down the boy’s face by the time he’d finished speaking, but before he could backpedal or apologize, his son had unbuckled himself from the car and had thrown himself into his father’s arms.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you-”

“Woah, slow down sweetheart. You’re okay. It’s all okay.”

He held his son in his arms and rocked back and forth soothingly as he sobbed into his shoulder, tears rolling down his jacket as he hugged him.

“Moonbeam, sweetie, I’ve got you.”


End file.
